Few wildlife experiences compare to seeing a mountain gorilla in the wild jungles of Uganda. After hiking for several hours through dense forest, you have a single hour to spend with mountain gorillas, who let you share the space and observe them from a strict 32 ft (10 m) distance. It’s magical but also requires intensive preparation from a team of specialists over several years.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in southwestern Uganda is home to around half of the world’s mountain gorilla population. It’s one of the few places in the world where travellers can observe mountain gorilla families in the wild. These families get used to the presence of humans through a rigorous tracking process that is overseen by conservation professions and wildlife authorities.
“Habituation is a process of getting gorillas accustomed to human presence without altering their natural behaviour,” says Nelson Guma, Conservation Area Manager with the Uganda Wildlife Authority, which oversees gorilla tracking in Bwindi. “It all starts with assessing a wild group that is viable for tracking.” These family groups typically have at least six individuals and comprise a silverback (the term for the dominant male, named for their distinctive silver fur), an adult female, some younger adults, and several juveniles and infants. Once a group is identified, trackers put together a specific program for the family.
The first step is searching for signs, which “can include fresh animal trails, feces, and chewed vegetation. The trackers follow the signs until they reach the nesting sites. At first, the gorillas may not tolerate the trackers.” Silverbacks may charge trackers as a sign of annoyance, or the entire family may run away. “As the process is repeated with time, the gorillas get to know that humans are not a threat, and they begin to reduce the gap between the observers and themselves.” Trackers continue to observe the families throughout the day and follow them back to their night nests. Equipped with notebooks, GPS tracking, cameras, and walkie talkies, trackers take copious notes each day and communicate with team members to make sure the daily routines of gorilla families are logged.
After about six months when a moderate level of trust has been built between the family and the trackers, “the family can be accessed by visitors through a gorilla habituation experience. Small groups of four visitors maximum are allowed to participate in the experience for a maximum of four hours. Visitors are briefed to know that they can expect to observe gorillas at a fairly long distance compared to fully habituated groups and expect to be charged by some members of the family. In this case, the gorillas are getting used to slightly larger numbers of people, as the habituation team carries out mock tourism.”
After one and a half to two years, wildlife management carries out an assessment to determine the gorilla family’s comfort level and whether they recommend them for regular gorilla tracking. “It usually takes about two to three years for a group to be confirmed” Nelson says.
Even after mountain gorilla groups are ready to share the forest with human visitors, challenges remain. As the local human population increases, the need for space and resources increases, leading to development encroaching on the forest. The ever-present spectre of climate change also looms large as it threatens to further shift ecological patterns and force invasive species into gorilla territory.
But wildlife organizations are also committed to tackling these problems head on by improving infrastructure, helping “garner political support for conservation and government intervention,” and establishing strong relationships with the local communities living on the edges of gorilla territory.
If you’re lucky enough to track mountain gorillas in the wild, realize that you’re following the path cleared for you by countless individuals such as Nelson Guma and his team. This profound interaction is made possible by the dedication and expertise of wildlife professionals committed to the preservation of gorillas. Years of hard work go into one special hour with our primate cousins.
This article was originally published in No. 33 of Globetrotting Magazine.
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You might say that Aren was destined to become a globetrotter after his family took him to Germany two times before he was four. If that wasn’t enough, a term spent in Sweden as a young teenager and a trek across Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand confirmed that destiny. An independent writer, director, and film critic, Aren has travelled across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. His favourite travel experience was visiting the major cities of Japan’s largest island, Honshu, but his love for food, drink, and film will take him anywhere that boasts great art and culture.
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